The Classic Brand Behind Cracker Barrel's Grocery Products

The country-style cookin' chain Cracker Barrel raised some eyebrows with a modern decor change-up in 2025 — which was quickly suspended — marking just one of many challenges the company is currently facing. However, fans who live far from a restaurant can still find "Cracker Barrel" branded products in the dairy aisle — namely its absolutely delightful boxed macaroni and cheese. 

As you're enjoying the savory flavors of noodles in cheese sauce (which, notably, require no added milk or butter), you might wonder who actually makes this product. Is it a grocery division of Cracker Barrel itself? As it happens, it is not; the company responsible for the Cracker Barrel mac and cheese boxed dinner is actually the classic grocery giant Kraft Heinz.

However, boxed mac and cheese isn't the only Cracker Barrel-branded product at grocery stores. While Kraft Heinz handles the boxed meals, if you peruse the refrigerated aisles, you might also find blocks or packages of slices, sticks, bars, or cubed cheese bearing the same logo. These were formerly part of Kraft's natural cheese division until it was acquired in 2021 by Lactalis USA. Today, those cheese products are produced under the Lactalis Heritage Dairy umbrella.

As it happens, Kraft Heinz has a hefty portfolio of restaurant-branded grocery products under its belt, some of which might surprise you. IHOP is another restaurant chain whose supermarket-bound items, which include ground coffee and K-Cups in a variety of blissful flavors like Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pancakes and Butter Syrup, are made by Kraft Heinz. The food conglomerate is also responsible for Taco Bell's at-home offerings. These include everything from meal kits mimicking restaurant items, like Crunchwrap Supremes and Chipotle Chicken Quesadillas, to taco shells and sauces.

Kraft Heinz also once partnered with casual chain TGI Fridays on a series of frozen appetizers bearing the latter's name. In May 2024, Kraft Heinz became full owners of the licensing rights and is legally allowed to use the TGI Fridays brand name for as long as it likes. TGI Fridays had been experiencing financial woes for months, which culminated in the company filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protections in November of 2024. It sold the licensing rights to Kraft Heinz before the filing to try and pay off debts, but it just wasn't enough. So now Kraft Heinz has complete control over the TGI Fridays brand of frozen snacks, which includes Buffalo Style Boneless Chicken Bites, the restaurant's famous Spinach & Artichoke Dip, and its beloved Potato Skins, too.